Never Let Go
by Argonian Dovahkiin
Summary: What if Demidevimon wasn't alone during the events of "The Prophecy"? What if he had a partner? In this oneshot, we take a look into the thoughts of the only friend of digital world's of infamous little minion! (Takes place during "The Prophecy". IMPORTANT NOTE AT THE END!)


**Kesshite - Never**

 **Suru - Let**

 **Iku - Go**

* * *

 _Have you ever had your deepest desires fulfilled and then destroyed not even a minute later? Have you ever had your wildest dreams become reality, only to wake up and realise they're just that- dreams?_

"Hell yeah!" he cheered as he watched Myotismon, his master, saviour and reason for living, rise to his full potential, obtaining a larger, more intimidating form. He could almost see the massive amount of power flowing through the now colossal digimon, pumping through his veins like _venom_. The sight sent a wave of pride through his system.

Demidevimon, his partner and best friend since day one under Etemon's employ, hovered excitedly over his head, eager for the praise and reward they would surely receive for their assistance.

"Now that's what I call 'large and in charge'!" said Demidevimon as he perched himself on his partner's shoulder.

The young boy covered his ears as his master released a guttural roar loud enough to make a deaf man flinch. "Might wanna add 'loud and proud' to that list, buddy," he called over his ringing ears. Once he was absolutely sure his ears weren't bleeding, he called, "How ya feelin', boss?"

Their master did not reply. He looked down at them, as he often did in his throne room. Only now they weren't kneeling, and his eyes lacked pupils. His lips twisted into a cruel, disturbing grin. Despite his excitement, the boy could not help the shiver of fear that went down his spine. Something wasn't right about that grin.

 _Have you ever had everything you've ever believed in swept out from under you, because you were too focused on the high to notice the approaching ground?_

He was jerked back to reality by the sound of tires grinding against tar, followed by a draconic roar. He turned to a sight that left his anguish forgotten and annoyance in its place. Ready to foolishly oppose his master was none other than the digidestined. He found himself torn between groaning and rolling his eyes. The annoying group of 'heroes' was the very bane of his and Demidevimon's existence. Two of their digimon, Agumon and Gabumon, had already digivolved, much to the boy's envy. He had always wanted a digivice of his own, but was never deemed worthy of one. Oh well. Perhaps he could pry one from their cold, dead hands once his master was done with them.

"Oh, where are our manners?" Demidevimon's quip got their attention. They didn't look very happy to see the bat digimon or his human partner, but that mattered little. The feeling was mutual, after all. "Allow us to introduce the new and improve VenomMyotismon!"

"He's the true king of the undead,' the boy added, enjoying the uncertainty in their expressions. It wasn't fear, but it was a start. "And I think it goes without saying that he's the 'un' and you guys are SO the 'dead'."

 _Have you ever looked back on an incident and realised that in retrospect, you probably should've seen it coming a mile away?_

"Power…," VenomMyotismon snarled. He'd heard enough. It was time to feed. "I'm…hungry!"

The boy gulped at his master's tone. He could tell something was wrong, but dared not speak of it lest he earn his master's wrath.

Demidevimon, who was oblivious to his partner's dread, was more than happy to deliver the good news. "No problem, boss. There are all those hypnotized people just lying there waiting for ya!"

The boy shook his and pushed his anguish to the back of his mind. Now was not the time for second thoughts. He had a master to serve and a world to conquer. Not to mention the field day he was going to have picking the pockets of the soon-to-be dead digidestined.

And they say crime doesn't pay.

"Yes…." There was that disturbing grin again. "But I think I'll have a light appetizer to start things off."

 _Because let me tell you….._

It all happened so fast. With impressive speed for a digimon his size, VenomMyotismon reached down and grabbed both Demidevimon and his partner. The boy did not move. He couldn't understand what was happening. Surely their master wasn't about to do - what he thought he was going to do? Not after everything they had done for him? Was he?

Demidevimon, who was being pressed into his shoulder by VenomMyotismon's thumb, tried to struggle free. "H-Hey! W-What are you doing?!"

Their master did not respond. He raised them higher until they were right above his giant mouth. The colossal beast gave them one last evil smile before opening his mouth, revealing very sharp teeth; each as long as the boy's leg and as wide as his torso. He began to inhale, causing a large amount of air to rush past the boy's head like turbulence. From the boy's point of view, it was like staring into a black hole. He wanted to say something, to beg his master to reconsider or at the very least: spare Demidevimon. But no words passed his lips. His mouth stayed open, stuck in a lousy impression of his master's current action, but it was not fear that kept his voice at pay. It was habit. He had learned early on that begging and screaming only worsened the punishment and he really didn't want to know what could possibly be worse than _this_.

He could feel the hand around him begin to loosen its grip. As the colossal fingers began to retract, he had a brief moment to reflect on the irony of his situation. He had always wished that one day, he and Demidevimon would look down at Myotismon for a change, just to see what it would be like. How funny that such a small wish came with such a high price.

He closed his eyes so he wouldn't see it coming.

And then he was dropped.

Time seemed to slow down after that. He vaguely registered the horrified cries of the digidestined. He opened his eyes one last time to see them staring up at him with wide disbelieving eyes. The keeper of Friendship held his hands over the young eyes of Hope and Light in a foolish attempt retain their innocence for just a little bit longer. Knowledge and Reliability looked like they were going to be sick while Sincerity looked like she would burst into tears at any moment. Gatomon, his and Demidevimon's fierce rival in the contest for Myotismon's favour, looked appalled. Even though they were just minor nuisances to her, about to meet an untimely demise. His eyes moved over to the keeper of Love. Such an interesting expression she held. If he didn't know any better, he'd say that she looked sad to see them go.

Of course, that couldn't be any further from the truth. What reason could she possibly have to remorse him? Wasn't this what they wanted; to have two less enemies to deal with? Were the tables turned, he was sure that he'd be picking pockets with a smile on his face while Demidevimon laughed his wings off.

Speaking of Demidevimon...

His eyes moved to his partner. The bat digimon's rear was on full display for him as he tried - in vain - to fly away from his fate. Funny how that would be the last thing he saw.

He had fallen past the teeth at that point. He turned his body so that his front faced the heavens. He had hoped, that by turning his back to the darkness, it would be a little easier to accept his fate.

It wasn't.

Instead he watched as his master's jaws began to close and his last glimpse of light begin to fade. Demidevimon was still trying to flutter his way to freedom, but all that struggling was starting to take it's toll. His movements were becoming forced and sluggish and his laboured breath echoed in the seemingly unending darkness that would soon be their tomb. He silently etched on the little digimon, hoping that at least his friend would rise to freedom while he fell further into darkness. For a while it looked like he was making progress. His wings fluttered faster and he was finally moving in a direction that wasn't backwards. But just like all good in their lives, this was short-lived. Like a small flame in an airtight box, the last of Demidevimon's energy sputtered before finally dying out. With it went the boy's hope, delusional as it was.

As the jaws closed and the final curtain fell, the boy could do nothing else but close his eyes and sigh. His fate had been sealed.

The curtain had fallen.

… _.It's not as funny as it sounds._

The shivers that went through his body were bittersweet. It meant he was alive, but was that really a good thing? Being eaten was bad enough, but to then be bored to death while floating in the cold, unending darkness that was his former master's gut? That HAD to qualify as insult to injury or something.

He had stopped falling a while ago...or at least he thought he did. It was hard to tell. He didn't feel like he was still falling, but for all he knew, he could've just been falling for a really long time. It wasn't like he had a window to gauge time or anything.

He curled up and brought his arms around his legs in an attempt to ward of the cold invading his system. Why did it have to be damn cold? Why did it have to be so damn dark? Growing up a lowly henchman to both Etemon and Myotismon, he had grown used to living in uncomfortable environments, but this was too much.

So cold. So _dark_. He didn't want to be here. He wanted to go…..to go…..

"...home?" The word echoed a few times. Nanimon had once told him that a digimon's last thought should be of home. He wasn't a digimon, but the idea still applied, right? But where was their home? With Etemon? No, he didn't even give them a bed, even less a home. Myotismon's castle? They were given a cozy little cell to sleep in from time to time, but that was only if they did their job right, which now that he thought about it, wasn't very often. That never really bothered them though. They were usually too busy doing Myotismon's bidding to sleep much anyway.

So didn't that make them homeless? He thought of himself as many things: handsome, bombastic, king of the hill, but never a hobo. That was just sad.

Another piece of advice came to mind. It came from who he thought was the last digimon to ever want to talk to them. Wizardmon, who was another rival of theirs, (more Demidevimon's than his since he hardly spoke to the odd wizard - something about that pointy hat just freaked him out), had once said that one's 'home' was where one felt most happy. The words were lost on them at the time and Demidevimon had even gone as far as calling him crazy which, coming from them, was really saying something.

He groaned as another shiver racked his system. Dammit, all this 'home' nonsense was getting him nowhere! He just wanted to sleep. To sleep and forget his failure. That had to be it. He failed to be a perfect little underling. That was the reason their master saw it fit to punish them in such a brutal manner. He'd done something to upset his master and was now being punished accordingly. But what was it that set his master off like this? Just what had he done to deserve such a tragic end? Was it because they failed to make sure the digidestined never activated their crests? But he thought they had redeemed themselves when they brought him the eighth child. Did they not work hard enough? Gazimon told them they were mentally unstable due to lack of sleep and even then, they refused to get any sleep until their tasks were complete. Was that not enough?

Was it...something that Demidevimon did?

No, that was ridiculous. Granted; the number of blunders between them were as large as a Machinedramon, but he always covered up for the little bat in hopes that his little buddy would be spared. It never worked as Myotismon would punish them both regardless, but he usually got the brunt of it. It was better that way, for both of them. As long as his partner was okay, then he could live with the beatings, burns and other punishments for his mistakes.

So no, it couldn't have been Demidevimon. It had to have been him. It had to be! But why? There had to be a reason they were being punished. Their master wouldn't have done so otherwise….right?

Of course not! That was absurd! It was obviously his fault. There must've been something he could've done or perhaps, not have done, to prevent this from happening. He refused to believe that their master would eat them simply for the sake of doing so. That he had _used_ them. That they were nothing more to him than tools to be broken or simply thrown away once they'd outlived their usefulness.

They were more than that. They were loyal - the most loyal in fact. There were so many digimon who left Myotismon's army, each with an excuse more ridiculous than the last. But not them. _They_ stayed by Myotismon's side when even Gatomon showed her true colours.

Their master _did_ care. He only punished them because they did something wrong or when he wanted them to do better. That's what he'd told himself for over half a year. Was that all a lie? Had they really been wasting their time?

 _Though looking back on it all, I guess it was I who had the last laugh. Because when you get down to it, even after everything that happened, I still managed to hold on to something very precious to me._

He flinched as the sound of fluttering bat wings followed by disorganized chirping. _Of course_ those little blood suckers would be here. He had nothing against bats. In fact they were his favourite animal.

Key words "were".

He couldn't even begin to list all the times they had bitten and scratched at his skin because his master was too lazy to think of a better punishment. For such adorable creatures, they had some very sharp teeth. It even got to the point where Demidevimon developed chiroptophobia.

He never had the heart to point out the irony.

The fluttering and chirping was getting louder. He covered his ears, but it was pointless. In such a vast empty space the echoes bounced all over the place, assaulting his ears from all angles. Nails against a chalkboard was a freaking walk on the beach compared to this.

"Oh no. N-Not bats. I hates bats," came a familiar whimpered, barely audible among the sound of their coming demise.

He shakily opened his eyes. Scanning the inky blackness, he found not the bat-shaped bundle of data and binary code he was used to seeing everyday, but instead saw a small light blue blob-like creature with ear-like appendages that it used to cover its red crescent moon-shaped eyes as it shook in fear. It seemed that in an attempt to make him easier to….digest, VenomMyotismon's darkness had degenerated his best friend into his prior form, Pagumon. Despite the situation, he couldn't help but think that he looked rather adorable in that form.

' _Just like when we first met,'_ he thought. He found himself wondering how long ago that was.

...

 _He had been eight when he first fell Into the digital world, much sooner than the digidestined and unlike them, he wasn't lucky enough to just stumble into a digimon willing to be his friend. He wandered for nearly a week before he was eventually 'rescued' by Etemon. While that may not seem like a long time to most, to a scared eight-year-old who didn't know which way was up, it was an eternity. Being the adorably naive child that he was, he was very grateful to the Elvis-copyright and eagerly pledged his undying loyalty to him._

 _It wasn't until he turned ten that he realised the orange monkey was completely off his rocker and by then it was too late. It was during that two year timespan that he met Pagumon, or rather, caught him after Etemon threw him into a crowd of digimon he had threatened into listening to him sing. Etemon, being the king of dramatic flare, loudly declared them partners, stating that "The Almighty Funk" had deemed it so. He then proceeded to sing an hour long song about partnership and funky friendship._

 _Not a lot of digimon liked them after that._

 _They were hesitant to interact at first, but seeing as no one else wanted to be around them at the time, they didn't really have much of a choice. It was either become friends or tell Etemon he was wrong, which never ended well for anyone._

 _Not wanting to go through another 'concert', the two sat down on opposite ends of a tree stump that may or may not have actually been a sleeping Woodmon, and had their first ever conversation._

 _Or tried to. It took a few minutes, but once the initial awkwardness had faded and Woodmon stopped chasing them, they discovered that they actually had a lot in common. Both of them have a twisted sense of humour, are incredibly mischievousness and a love of trouble. Especially for others._

 _For a while, things were going great. They were inseparable. They spent all their time either going over the details of their next prank or implementing said prank and laughing their little butts off while their victims either hightailed it to the nearest restroom (which was usually a bush) or screamed about their hair being on fire. It wasn't until he turned eleven that the problems really started._

 _He was there when the digidestined defeated Etemon. He had watched as the Elvis wannabe was sucked into that black hole. At first he was relieved, happy even. He was no longer chained to the orange tyrant. He could finally go a week without the audio-based torture that was Etemon's voice. He could leave the pyramid without having to worry about Etemon's thugs hunting him down. He was finally free!_

 _But like all good things in his life, his relief was short-lived. He was free, but free to do what? He could finally leave the pyramid, but where would he go? He'd spent three years in that messed up place. It was where he grew up. It was all he had known. The rest of the world was like a whole new universe and that scared him. While Etemon may not have been the best choice of company, life under him was simple. With Etemon he had a purpose, an identity. He was Etemon's lackey, nothing more, nothing less. He never strived for anything more. He never needed to. He never wanted to. But all that was gone, stolen from him by seven children who couldn't accept how things were. So what if Etemon wanted to rule the digital world? That's life! The strong will always seek to control the weak. That was one of the first things Etemon had taught him. Why did they have to change that? Why did they have to ruin everything?!_

 _Once the dust had cleared and the so called 'heroes' had moved on, he was left alone, lost and purposeless. He wept. He didn't know what else to do. He had no choice but to accept the fact that he was back at square one only this time, there was no orange monkey to save him. He fell to his knees and wept for hours on end until eventually he ran out of tears. After that he just wanted to sleep. The emotional turmoil combined with the day's events had taken its toll, leaving him mentally, physically and emotionally exhausted. Lacking the strength to go back to the now desolate base he had once called home, he let his body fall to the ground like a puppet without its strings. Knowing, but not caring about how much his body was going to ache when he woke up, he closed his eyes and let himself fall into a dreamless sleep._

 _He didn't know how long he had slept for, but when he woke up he was surprised to see his Demidevimon, who had digivolved a few weeks after his tenth birthday, staring down at him with a confused look on his face. When the virus-type asked him what his problem was, he responded with an equally confused expression before gesturing to the destruction around them. Demidevimon scanned their environment before shrugging, stating that the place always looked quite trashy to begin with and that he knew of a town not too far away, where they could sell some of the junk Etemon had stolen. At first he had refused, but the little devil was persistent and easily convinced the boy to join him._

 _"Trust me, kid, you stick with me and we'll go so far, even mega levels will have nothing on us!" It was not really the words that won him over, but rather how they were said. Demidevimon always had a charisma that could convince him he knew what he was doing, even when it was obvious he did not. It was one of his favourite traits about the digimon._

 _As time passed, he began to get used to the new world around him. They traveled from town to town, swiping and pickpocketing anything valuable they could get their hands on. They never stayed in one place for more than a week as the townsfolk would usually catch on and chase them out, not that they minded. It just gave them a chance to increase their fortune in a different place. Every new place offered them a chance at a better life and they would do anything to make that a reality._

 _Then they met Myotismon._

 _Myotismon had found them- saved them! He'd helped them escape from another angry mob by using his bats to carry them to a clearing far out of reach to most digimon. He had promised them a better life. He promised that if they worked under him, all their wishes would come true._

 _The boy felt a brief sense of déjà vu, but was quick to ignore it and pledged his allegiance without so much as a second thought._

...

A ghost of a smile graced his lips. Were it not for Demidevimon, he probably would've spent the rest of his life in an empty pyramid grieving himself to death. He had lost his purpose, but Demidevimon gave him a new one. He was scared of the outside world, but Demidevimon showed him that it wasn't bad if you played your cards right. Demidevimon had always stuck by him, especially when no one else would.

And he would do the same.

Ignoring the cold biting at his skin, he shifted his body until it faced the direction of the shivering blue ball. Sluggishly, he began to swim through the darkness. It was a slow process and each movement took far more energy than it should have, but that mattered little to him. He reached out, his fingers lightly grazing over the digimon's skin. The touch, despite being brief, caused Pagumon to curl further into himself. The boy nearly drew his hand back himself; the digimon's body was cold as death!

The bats were almost upon them. He could see the reds of their eyes as they screeched excitedly at the sight of new prey. The sound was so loud that they might as well have been next to him. He didn't have much time. Using the last bit of energy he had, he pushed himself forward and grabbed hold of the digimon, gently bringing him closer until he was shivering against his chest. Like a child in its mother's arms, Pagumon's weak struggles only lasted a moment before he became still.

 _And now that I have him…._

Not a second later did their punishment arrive, eager to begin their feast. The boy tightened his grip as the little monsters began to dig in, tearing away at his clothing to get to the delicacies hidden underneath. Knowing, but still fearing what was to come, he brought his knees up and shifted into a kind of floating fetal position. Some of the bats began bite at his forearm in an attempt to get to Pagumon, but the boy only tightened his grip. Only five seconds had passed and already the back of his shirt was in tatters, leaving nothing between them and their meal. He bit his lip hard enough to draw blood as the first pair of fangs pierced his flesh with many more soon following. Even as the swarm of teeth and claws tore through his back like a hot knife through tofu, he refused to scream, for his voice could not reach a volume high enough to express the level of pain surging through his body. Instead he looked down at his partner, who looked back at him with eyes full of terror and concern, and smiled comfortingly, trying to let him know that everything was going to be okay, that they would make it out of this by the skin of their teeth, just like they always did. But what his smiled hid away, his eyes revealed clear as day. Ice cold tears fell from his eyes and landed on Pagumon's head, drawing a whimper from the blob.

It was not going to be okay. They would not make it out of this. They were likely going to die here, devoured by bats inside the belly of the one they served loyally for half a year so that he could gain power. They had let their greed and foolishness cloud their judgement and now it would cost them everything they ever had and ever wanted.

But that was okay. Resting his forehead against his partner's, he kept smiling, even as he felt his blood drip down his back. If it was like this, with his best friend safe in his arms, than he didn't mind dying. As long as he could stay like this….

… _.I'm never letting him go again._

….forever.

* * *

It was sheer luck that they found him.

No one knew why they had woken up on the ground floor of the Fuji TV building or how they got there. The only real clue they had was an odd dream and the words "Lord Myotismon". Once it was confirmed that no one was injured or missing, people began to disperse and head home. There wasn't anything else they could do.

It wasn't until they arrived at the city that they realised how dire their situation was.

It looked like a war had taken place. Buildings were destroyed and the roads were in complete disarray. Authorities were called in as soon as the destruction was seen and an investigation was quickly underway. Sirens blared and orders were yelled as medics and even a few civilians searched the rubble for any casualties. They were relieved and very confused to find none even as the search reached the fifth hour mark.

One of the paramedics, a tall blonde woman wearing red-framed glasses, had just about given up the search when it happened. It wasn't her fault of course. Had she known someone's leg was in her path, she would never have stepped on it, especially in high heels. When she looked back to see what she had tripped over and saw that the rest of the body was buried under a small pile of rubble, she immediately called for help before she began digging. It was no small shock that under bits of broken building she saw a young boy, barely older than ten by the looks of it. The little clothing he wore was practically shredded and was covered in blood stains. His body was covered in scratches and what looked like bite marks. The worst part was his back and the back of his neck, which looked like it had been the scratching post of a very bored tiger. He held a strange object in his arms. It was blue and round but that was all she could make out from her current angle. A plush toy perhaps?

She shook her head. She had more important things to worry about. She took off her coat and wrapped it around him where it immediately darkened as it lessened the bleeding. Hearing hurried footsteps, she turned to the sight of her colleges rushing with a gurney already prepared. When they tried lift the boy he flinched away and tightened his grip on his toy. She felt her heart break as tears fell from her eyes.

No other casualties were found that day. Authorities claimed it was a terrorist attack, but no one was stupid enough to believe someone would knock out a city, and place them in a safe place before destroying their homes. The only clue to what really happened that day was a bleeding eleven-year old boy, currently being sent to the nearest hospital. Based on his condition, no one was sure if they would get answer from him any time soon.

* * *

" _So...you're going to be my partner?"_

" _Yep, that what Etemon says and I wouldn't question his decisions. He hates that."_

" _Yeah, he sure is scary when he's mad."_

" _Tell me about it. I'm Pagumon by the way. What's your name?"_

" _My name….?"_

" _Don't you remember your own name? What are ya, brain dead?"_

" _What, no I remember it. It's just….I haven't really said it in a long time."_

" _Well can ya say it now? It's been like, five thousand words now and I still don't know what it is."_

" _What….?"_

" _Never mind. Just say your name already!"_

" _Alright alright, geez. My name is…."_

* * *

 _ **…..accessing….accessing….**_

 _ **Running …..ERROR…..ERROR...eR**_ **rO** _rrrrR_ rrrr **RRR….**

 **THis** _**ERROR**_ ….Ha _ **VE**_ _N_ _ **o**_ _N_ _ **A**_ me... _ **B**_ _UT_ i **T** cA **ll** _E_ d….

" _...Kessuriku."_

* * *

 **Wow this took a lot longer to finish than I thought it would.**

 **I'd also like to point out that this story didn't just come to me while I was eating a sandwich like my other stories. This one was inspired by a few other fanfictions, most of them about Demidevimon.**

 **And here they are:**

 **Conversion of Loyalties by Cho-Ran**

 **Hope for the Hopeless by ngrey651**

 **The Whispering Little Devil by Looneygamemaster**

 **Return by CorinnetheAnime**

 **I'd like to thank and congratulate these authors for making such awesome stories. Credit where credit is due and all that.**

 **IMPORTANT: I might continue this as a full story involving the rest of the digidestined which takes place during or after the events of Adventure Tri but that depends on two things: The feedback I get about this oneshot and the ending of Adventure Tri.**

 **So please, click on that review button and tell me what you think!**


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